Quantum wavelength converter between a microwave signal and an optical signal

Abstract

The present invention is in the field of a quantum wavelength converter between a microwave signal and an optical signal and vice versa. In the converter a nanoscale cavity optomechanical circuit is used in which optomechanical cavities supporting colocalized infrared photons and microwave phonons are combined with a photonic and a phononic waveguide.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A quantum transduction system configured to transfer individual quantum states, the system including a cryogenically cooled piezoelectric, resonant electro-mechanical interface coupling device configured to operate at a quantum level, such that quantum information can be distinguished from background noise;
 and in which the system includes a pulsed drive laser converting between a mechanical mode and a photon mode whilst preserving quantum coherence, in which the drive laser is a red-detuned laser configured to result in anti-Stokes scattering. 
 
     
     
       2. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is configured to be resonant with incoming microwave photons. 
     
     
       3. The quantum transduction system of  claim 2  in which the piezoelectric coupling device has a gigahertz frequency mechanical mode. 
     
     
       4. The quantum transduction system of  claim 3  in which the piezoelectric coupling device has a gigahertz frequency mechanical mode centered at 2.7 GHz. 
     
     
       5. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is configured to receive an input quantum state in the microwave domain, and to generate a phonon state that encodes the input quantum state information and, through a quantum coherent state conversion process, couples that quantum state information to an optical quantum state which it then outputs at an optical (UV, VIS, or IR) wavelength. 
     
     
       6. The quantum transduction system of  claim 5  in which the optical quantum state that is created from the phonon state through the conversion process is evanescently coupled to an optical waveguide that is then coupled to an optical fiber. 
     
     
       7. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is configured to generate on average a single phonon for each incoming photon. 
     
     
       8. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is configured to operate at a single phonon level. 
     
     
       9. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is configured to receive an optical quantum state that encodes quantum information, and through a coherent state conversion process, to couple that quantum state information to a phonon state that encodes the quantum state information and convert that phonon state to a microwave signal that encodes the quantum state information. 
     
     
       10. The quantum transduction system of  claim 9  in which the optical quantum state is evanescently coupled to an optical waveguide. 
     
     
       11. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device comprises a resonant electro-mechanical interface that is coupled to an opto-mechanical resonance interface. 
     
     
       12. The quantum transduction system of  claim 11  in which the resonant electro-mechanical interface is configured to generate a phonon state that encodes input quantum state information and, through a quantum coherent state conversion process, the opto-mechanical resonance interface is configured to couple that quantum state information to an optical quantum state. 
     
     
       13. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is a heterogenous structure integrated into a chip and comprises an electro-mechanical resonator that is mechanically coupled to an opto-mechanical resonator, and different materials are used for the electro-mechanical resonator and for the optical opto-mechanical resonator. 
     
     
       14. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is a homogenous structure integrated into a chip and comprises an electro-mechanical resonator that is mechanically coupled to an opto-mechanical resonator, and the same material is used for the electro-mechanical resonator and for the opto-mechanical resonator. 
     
     
       15. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device includes a photon absorption surface layer to inhibit absorption of photons that would otherwise heat the mechanical resonance coupling device and hence add unwanted noise. 
     
     
       16. The quantum transduction system of  claim 15  in which the piezoelectric coupling device operates at optical (UV, VIS, or IR) wavelengths and the photon absorption layer does not absorb light in those wavelengths. 
     
     
       17. The quantum transduction system of  claim 16  in which the photon absorption surface layer is selected from a dielectric material, wherein a cation of the dielectric material is selected from Al, Ti, Ta, and Si, and wherein the anion of the dielectric material is selected from O, N, and C, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
       18. The quantum transduction system of  claim 16  in which the light absorption layer is a conformal layer, and the light absorption inhibiting layer has a thickness of 1-10 nm, preferably 2-8 nm, such as 4-6 nm. 
     
     
       19. The quantum transduction system of  claim 16  in which the light absorption layer is at least one of an ALD layer, and a chemically oxidized layer. 
     
     
       20. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device includes materials selected from the following materials: III/V materials, wherein “III” materials are selected from B, Al, Ga, In, and Tl, and wherein “V” materials are selected from N, P, As, and Sb, such as GaN, GaP, AlN, and AlP, and niobates, tantalates, and vanadates, such as monovalent salts thereof, such as Li comprising salts thereof, such as LiNbO3, and LiTaO3. 
     
     
       21. The quantum transduction system of  claim 11  in which the material of the opto-mechanical resonance interface is selected from III/V materials, such as GaAs, and LiNbO3, and LiTaO3, a dielectric material, such as silicon oxide, such as quartz, silicon nitride, and silicon carbide, and silicon. 
     
     
       22. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the piezoelectric coupling device is at least in part integrated onto a single chip. 
     
     
       23. The quantum transduction system of  claim 11  in which the resonant electro-mechanical interface is a 1D piezoelectric optomechanical crystal (OMC) mechanically coupled to an interdigital transducer (IDT). 
     
     
       24. The quantum transduction system of  claim 11  in which the resonant electro-mechanical interface is a piezoelectric optomechanical crystal with a gigahertz frequency mechanical mode. 
     
     
       25. The quantum transduction system of  claim 23  in which the piezoelectric optomechanical crystal is configured to be cooled to its quantum ground state and to remain in the ground state during conversion of a microwave quantum state to an optical quantum state. 
     
     
       26. The quantum transduction system of  claim 24  in which the piezoelectric optomechanical crystal is configured to generate a single phonon from a single input photon. 
     
     
       27. The quantum transduction system of  claim 11  in which the resonant electro-mechanical interface is configured to generate surface acoustic waves. 
     
     
       28. The quantum transduction system of  claim 11  in which the opto-mechanical resonance interface includes a periodic structure shaped and sized to generate optical resonance. 
     
     
       29. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the system includes a cryostat or cooler that encloses the mechanical resonance coupling device and the cryostat or cooler is configured to cryogenically cool the piezoelectric coupling device to an operational state selected from the following: less than 5K; less than 1K; less than 300 mK; less than 100 mK; less than 25 mK; less than 15 mK; less than 1000% of the applicable quantum ground state energy; less than 100% of the applicable quantum ground state energy; less than 50% of the applicable quantum ground state energy; less than 15% of the applicable quantum ground state energy; close to the quantum limit. 
     
     
       30. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which the system outputs a signal at an optical telecom low-loss wavelength and is configured to couple to one or more of the following: an optical fiber; a quantum processor operating in the microwave domain with a network operating in the optical (UV, VIS, IR) domain; a network of quantum processors, each operating in the microwave domain, using a fiber optic network operating in the optical domain; a distributed quantum computing network. 
     
     
       31. The quantum transduction system of  claim 1  in which photons from the red de-tuned laser are de-tuned from the cavity resonance frequency of the resonant electro-mechanical interface coupling device and undergo cavity-enhanced anti-Stokes scattering, resulting in the photon mode output being at the cavity resonance frequency.